Vietnamese feed on hold for melamine test

Vietnamese ports are stocked with tens of thousands of tonnes of imported
animal feed, waiting to be tested on melamine contamination. Enterprises are
losing $5-10,000 a day on storage fees.

Vu Kim Thanh from Proconco, an animal feed producer, said that "If the test
comes out 'positive', enterprises have to wait another 10-15 days to find out
the exact melamine content.

"We also have to have a lot of other products
tested for melamine, which has been putting big difficulties on us," Thanh said.
The Vietnam Animal Feed Association has sent a dispatch to the Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development, and asked for a post-customs clearance
verification mechanism so ships don't have to be detained in ports.

The
director of the Animal Husbandry Department under the Ministry of Agriculture
and Rural Development has suggested that it is necessary to test only high-risk
products only, for example fish and meat powder and products with dairy
ingredients.

Vietnam accepts a maximum melamine content of 2.5mg/kg. The
Agriculture Ministry has also identified12 laboratories authorised to carry out
melamine tests on animal feed and seafood.